EMMA REBELLATO (HOST): Well, the Federal Minister for Science, Ed Husic is in London today for a major gathering of world leaders, tech bosses and researchers focused on artificial intelligence. The key goal of the summit is to find the best way to maximise the benefits of this technology while also mitigating the risks. And Ed Husic joins us now from London. Minister, good morning. Thanks for joining us this morning.

ED HUSIC, MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE: Hello there.

EMMA REBELLATO: What do you see as the biggest risks of AI?

ED HUSIC: I guess, at its best, AI can help improve quality of life in terms of health, environment, strengthen our economy. Then at its worst, it can distort and divide. And what we're trying to do is get the balance right, try to build trust in a technology that can help us out. But there are clear challenges and the reality is that you don't get the world meeting, joining up in the way that they have over the last two days to think about technology. But you've seen that happen. 27 countries sign on to a declaration that when AI is designed, deployed, developed and used, that we have a safe and trustworthy framework to make that happen. And this is a big moment when thinking about trying to tackle the risks of AI.

EMMA REBELLATO: Well, it's one thing to sign up to this so-called Bletchley Declaration, but what can actually be done to mitigate these risks? Is it too late?

ED HUSIC: I think a number of things. I think it's been very clear from a number of countries, not the least of which the US, which brought in a big Executive Order this week to improve AI safety and security. There'll be a lot more safety testing and also evaluating those AI models, holding companies much more accountable for the way that they do that development work. There will be safety institutes set up in the US and the UK to help with that testing and involve researchers in that work. And a state of the science report that will look at the developments, particularly around what they call frontier AI, generative AI and Australia will have a voice there with the CSIRO's Chief Scientist, Dr Bronwyn Fox. She'll be representing our country in the development of that research work to give governments and regulators a heads-up on how the technology is evolving too. And it builds on some of the stuff that we've been doing here, be it the setting up of a responsible AI network in this country earlier this year, plus the consultations we've been doing around the safe and responsible use of AI in Australia.

EMMA REBELLATO: Now, we know some of the risks of AI, which we've talked about today, but also ongoing. What about the potential benefits? We saw overnight the new Beatles song being released with the use of AI technology. So, there must be some good things that can come out of it.

ED HUSIC: Totally, I mean, I think of the way in which AI improving software for cochlea’s bionic ear, delivering the gift of sound for people that have been denied it. The fact that in Australia we're looking at using AI not to help us predict the path of bushfires in three days, three months time, but 30 years. That will be huge in terms of protecting lives and property. And we lived through a pandemic where we had to develop a vaccine in the middle of lockdowns and a global pandemic and do so really quickly compared to times past where it's taken a lot longer to do so. And AI has played a big part in that. So, there are a lot of benefits, but people focus on the risks. I don't think it's that the robots will take over, but that AI-generated disinformation might. We've got to take these risks seriously. The prospect that we'll have so much AI-generated material, working out, what's real, what's fake, that's another big focus of what governments are tackling.

EMMA REBELLATO: Minister, I want to turn your attention now to the Middle East. The Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, Penny Wong both spoke out yesterday with fairly strong language, or at least stronger language, saying the international community will not accept ongoing civilian deaths and it's again urged Israel to abide by international law. Are those words strong enough, in your view?

ED HUSIC: I've been concerned for weeks about where things would head. I was concerned that innocent Palestinian families would bear the brunt and bear the heaviest burden in terms of the type of action that was being foreshadowed. I think the world, the international community is watching very closely. I've said previously, there has to be a much more strategic, precise way to hold Hamas to account. Israel's actions, they do matter in terms of the way in which they conduct these military operations. And I think a lot of us are deeply concerned about the impact, not only on innocent Palestinians, but particularly kids. Kids being affected and losing their lives in this way is something that, as I said, people in our community, in the international community, are deeply concerned about. There's got to be a better way.

EMMA REBELLATO: Minister, a group of UN experts also overnight came out calling for a humanitarian ceasefire. And in their words, they said they were convinced the Palestinian people are at grave risk of genocide. How do you feel about that statement?

ED HUSIC: Well, look, I think that what we have said is that we have called in times past, in days past, for a humanitarian ceasefire to allow aid and assistance to get through to Gaza. Be very careful about using words like genocide. What we need to do is to de-escalate, to calm things down and to, in particular, help those that are innocent and have been deeply affected by those actions there in Gaza to be able to get that help, aid, assistance in. It's been particularly pleasing to see Palestinian Australians get assistance to get out. And the Australian government's been working really hard there but really, we've got to de-escalate, calm things down, help people out in need.

EMMA REBELLATO: Minister Ed Husic, thank you very much for joining us this morning from London.

ED HUSIC: Thank you for your time.

ENDS